1. Field of the Invention
This invention relates to a system for the protection of valuable documents or objects such as means of payment, bank notes, cheques or bank cards, enclosed in a physically burglar-proof container, called a container throughout the rest of this description, passing through a sequence of a restricted number of identified logical states, and which will destroy the contents by appropriate means in the case of an aggression.
2. Description of the Related Art
A protection system of this type is described in detail in European patent EP-0.409.725, and it is characterized in that the container is provided with internal management means operating like a machine with xe2x80x9climited modesxe2x80x9d in which the operating cycle comprises a restricted number of logical states called xe2x80x9cmodesxe2x80x9d, the transition from a first mode to a second mode being the consequence of an isolated event, and the acceptability of this event being, or having previously been, checked by independent means that can be put into contact with the said internal management means of the container, the said transition then being accompanied by loss of memory of the previous mode.
According to the previous patent, the system can be used for protection of cash placed in a container, for example by the manager of a bank agency called the sender to be transported by a transporter, for example to a branch of this bank agency; the sequence of logical states, and consequently the transfer of responsibility, is controlled by a single computer that consequently acts as supervisor to manage the logical security of the containers, in other words to verify the acceptability of transitions from some operating modes of their internal management means, to other modes; in this respect, it is worth mentioning three particularly significant examples of transitions:
a) the only way to protect the cash during transport is by the container: in this case the system then consists of the container alone,
b) at the time of delivery after transport, the only way of interrupting the mode in which the container was placed at the beginning of the transport operation, and which is all that it remembers, is a source of the information external to the container; the system must then be extended to include the external source of information, in other words the computer, which the container must firstly recognize as a reliable and safe partner,
c) after delivery, protection of the cash contained in the container is still complete, since it cannot be opened until the system is extended to include a second external information source, namely the user of this cash (in other words the addressee, the sender or the transporter) who must in turn be recognized as a reliable and safe partner by the container and the supervising computer.
Transitions between these three types of mode control the transfer of responsibility attached to the protection of the cash, regardless of whether or not the cash is enclosed in the container.
According to one fundamental characteristic of the previous document, the container, the computer, the sender or the addressee and the transporter are linked at the departure and arrival to a single terminal called a xe2x80x9cstationxe2x80x9d which forms the departure point and arrival point of a star network, in which the said station is the center. Therefore, there is a first station at the departure location of the container, and at least one other station at its arrival location. The use of this type of station connecting all parties concerned in a star configuration, helps to significantly simplify interfaces necessary for the said parties to dialog with each other. Consequently, the stations comprise the sophisticated electronic interfaces and containers and users simply manage an elementary connection dialog with these stations; obviously, the supervising computer itself manages more complex exchanges and actually forms a server center remote from all stations, all users and all containers, which provides it with efficient protection against logical and physical aggression.
Finally, in addition to the structural confidentially of stations, all communications between two parties and the system make use of a protocol in which the party who receives a message can authenticate the party who is supposed to have sent the message, and an acknowledgement of reception can also be made for this authentication.
This type of protection system is particularly useful for all cash transfers made as part of a routine and especially with a repetitive nature, for example such as transfers between a bank and its various agencies; it is then quite appropriate to install permanent terminals at the arrival and at the departure points, these permanent terminals being called xe2x80x9cresidue stationsxe2x80x9d in the prior document mentioned above, which act as interfaces between the container(s) physically used for the transfer of cash, the person (in other words the sender, transporter and later the addressee) and the server center, also called the supervising computer.
However many circumstances arise in which it is necessary to occasionally or temporarily transfer or collect cash from or to locations that may vary considerably in different periods; particularly to provide a service for the safe transfer of cash, or for any category of small business for which the service frequency is inherently very variable.
It is easily understandable that in all these cases, it is not economically viable to install sophisticated resident equipment, and this is why this invention proposes that resident stations would be replaced by portable or mobile stations at the destination point; it is then quite conceivable that this type of solution could be very flexible in use for the transporter, to the extent that it does not require any prior installation of equipment and the customer can enjoy very short service start up times, which gives the transporter a decisive commercial advantage; this is the case particularly for events such as trade fairs, markets, exhibitions, or to be able to pick up or deliver cash from or to shops. Note also that even when transporting cash between banks, many cases are only single deliveries in which cash is transferred immediately and for which no secure storage is required; a mobile station is also quite suitable for this type of service, and conversely installation of a resident station would be inconceivable, making the protection system as described in the previous patent mentioned above unusable.
Consequently, this invention proposes a system for secure transport of securities and particularly means of payment, bank notes, checks or bank cards from a central departure site to a destination site, enclosed in a container which in case of aggression will cause their destruction by appropriate means, and which is provided with internal management means operating like a xe2x80x9cmachine with limited modesxe2x80x9d, in which the operating cycle comprises a restricted number of logical states called modes, the transition from a first mode to a second mode being the result of an isolated event, the acceptability of which being or having previously been checked by independent means capable of making contact with the said internal management means, the said transition then being accompanied by erasure of memory of the previous mode, the said system being constructed so that a user of the securities, who may be a sender, an addressee or a transporter, may utilize a container in connection with a single server center in a remote location capable of getting into contact with internal management means of the said container, at least when it is at the departure point, to check the acceptability of an event that causes a transition from one mode to another mode, the said elements being connected to each other through a single terminal called a station, in order to form a star network in which the said station is the center, characterized in that the station used by at least one addressee is a mobile and transportable station, and is not a resident station.
Other characteristics and advantages of the system according to the invention will be more obvious from the following description of a particular embodiment involving a simple case of transporting cash between a central site and an addressee site, for example a small shop, this case being given as a non-restrictive illustration of the system according to the invention, with reference to the attached drawing in which:
FIG. 1 is a block diagram of the network organization of the system according to prior art described in European patent EP-0.409.725,
FIG. 2 is a block diagram of the organization of a mobile station according to this invention.